Pat Thistlethwaite in 2012
Pat, The Weaver of Grass, lived a long and interesting life that contained many twists and turns and much joy. For a long time she was an English teacher, rising to become the Head of English in a tough comprehensive school in the city of Wolverhampton.
She was born in the early nineteen thirties in a farming village near Lincoln and finished her days in the Yorkshire Dales where she lived with her second husband, a dairy farmer called David Thistlethwaite who was ten years her junior.
She loved to travel and had lots of interests - including crafts, local history and the creation of poetry. In retirement, nothing pleased her more than to go out to lunch with friends and have a good old chinwag.
These are the main things that I remember about her but I am sure that other bloggers and blog visitors will recall many other things about Pat and the wholesome life she lived.
Currently her blog, "The Weaver of Grass" is no longer live on the internet which is a shame because I for one would have liked to look back through her treasury of posts. They could have been an enduring online monument to her inquisitiveness, her kindness, her commonsense and her affection for other people with all their differences.
Back in August 2017 I called in on Pat at South Dyke Farm near the village of Bellerby in North Yorkshire. Sadly her "farmer" had passed away in February of that year and she was preparing to move into a bungalow in the nearby market town of Leyburn. Unfortunately, she happened to be out for the day when I called but I peered inside her house where I could see cardboard boxes packed and ready to go. I left a can of salmon on her doorstep with a note. She always said she loved salmon.
Below - the semi-detached farmhouse and the drive up to the farm near Bellerby. It had been mothballed when I visited.
Pat embraced blogging with a passion and to me she was a great example of how senior citizens can use the internet to stay connected with the world. You might be alone in a bungalow or an isolated farmhouse but you can still "speak" to the world at large and follow the blogposts of others - even making new friends. In this sense she was probably a trailblazer.
She lived a good life, a happy life, making the most of her time here. She will be remembered with genuine affection by very many bloggers. Farewell to the one and only Pat Thistlethwaite.
Pat at the age of eight
I was sad to hear she died yesterday (Thursday 6th). I spent quite some time earlier this year reading her old blog posts, and was fascinated. The blog appears now to be by invitation only.
ReplyDeleteMaybe the "invitation only" barrier will come down. I hope so.
DeleteApologies - date not quite right.
DeleteThursday October 3rd according to John Gray's post.
DeletePat was the first person to welcome me into this blogging community when I took my initial tentative steps as a fledgling blogger. She was kind and supportive. A true lady.
ReplyDeleteShe went to the end of her life so bravely.
DeleteLovely tribute YP.
ReplyDeleteKind of you to say so Dave.
DeleteThank you so much for this post. I came late to reading The Weaver of Grass, but I'm glad I got to read her for about a year. She seemed like an amazing woman. What I especially liked about her, was that she never lost her curiosity, or her sense of wonder of the world. She gave me hope that growing old did not have to awful.
ReplyDeleteI am thankful that she slipped away without pain, at a very old age. Can we ask for more?
"She gave me hope that growing old did not have to awful"... I entirely get why you said that Pixie.
DeleteThis is so lovely. I enjoyed reading Pat's blog so much. Was glad I had read it all through/kept current. I didn't realize it was going to become by invitation only. Her last post (her "good-bye") I think was also lovely. Very plainly written but beautiful nonetheless. A live well lived indeed.
ReplyDeleteI appreciate your input Elle.
DeleteIf she lived a good happy life and left many people who ;loved, liked, or admired her, she was quite a successful person.
ReplyDeleteRIP Pat
It wasn't something she especially strove for, it was just in her.
DeleteThank you for your post. I wanted a little more from Weaver and you filled that need. My mother set me on to Pat several years ago. She admired her determination to get the most out of life even as mobility issues made her world smaller. After my mother passed, reading Pat's blog helped me miss my mother "a little" less.
ReplyDeleteWhat a lovely connection Melinda.
DeleteA thoughtful and eloquent tribute to Pat. She reminds me to stay interested in 'the world' whatever age I reach.
ReplyDeleteNot giving up and staying interested might well extend many people's lives.
DeleteI echo the thanks of others to you for this heartfelt tribute. I'm one who stumbled across Pat's blog only a year or two ago and how glad I am. We can all pause and think about living our last years so well. I will remember her.
ReplyDeleteShe never felt sorry for herself.
DeletePhotos I’ve never seen before YP , I’m very moved seeing them
ReplyDeleteShe would have hated this post though xx
She was indeed humble.
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